1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a fuel supply system of an internal combustion engine.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 shows the fundamental construction of a common rail fuel supply system of an internal combustion engine known from the prior art, namely a marine diesel engine operated with heavy fuel oil. This construction is known from DE 101 57 135 B4. Accordingly, the common rail fuel supply system of FIG. 1 comprises at least one injector 1 for each cylinder of the internal combustion engine. By way of the injectors 1, the fuel is injectable into each of the cylinders of the internal combustion engine. The common rail fuel supply system furthermore comprises a pumping device 3 having at least one low pressure pump 5, at least one high pressure pump 2 and a high pressure pump storage unit 8, in order to deliver fuel from a low pressure region 4 of the common rail fuel supply system into a high pressure region 6 of the same, wherein in the high pressure region 6 between the pumping device 3 and the injectors 1 a pressure storage system 7 that is permanently under high pressure is provided. The pressure storage system 7 that is permanently under high pressure, which is also called common rail, has a plurality of distributor units 9. The distributor units 9 are connected to the pumping device 3 and among themselves via high pressure lines 10 that are permanently under high pressure. The pressure storage system 7, namely the distributor units 9, are furthermore connected to the injectors 1 via high pressure lines 11 that are under high pressure at times depending on the injection cycle. The high pressure lines 11, which are under high pressure at times dependent on the injection cycle that connect the injectors 1 to the distributors 9, are assigned switching valves 12, which, dependent on the injection cycle, feed fuel to the injectors. With regard to further details, reference is made to DE 101 57 135 B4.
Such a fuel supply system of an internal combustion engine known from the prior art has a multiplicity of sealing points in the high pressure region 6, in particular in the region of the pressure storage system 7, which comprises the distributor units 9 that are coupled via the high pressure lines 10. In the region of these sealing points leakages can occur. When a leakage quantity becomes excessive, an orderly operation of the fuel supply system can no longer be ensured. Furthermore, the high pressure lines 10 as such can be damaged which can likewise cause an impermissibly high leakage. It is known to embody the high pressure lines 10 as jacketed high pressure lines 10 in order to discharge the leakage via jacket tubes of the high pressure lines 10, namely from distributor unit 9 to distributor unit 9 up to the region of the pumping device 3.
From DE 10 2013 000 606 A1 a further fuel supply system of an internal combustion engine is known. According to the prior art, all distributor units of the pressure storage system are connected to a common leakage collection line with a leakage sensor that is common for all distributor units to detect a leakage quantity that exceeds a limit value. Furthermore, each distributor unit of the pressure storage system is assigned an individual leakage detection device designed as a visual inspection device, to assign the leakage detected via the leakage sensor to at least one distributor unit.
Although in the fuel supply system known from DE 10 2013 000 606 A1 a time needed for the leakage detection and assigning of the leakage can be reduced, there is a need for a fuel supply system with which the exact assignment of a leakage to a distributor unit of the fuel supply system can take place even faster, more efficiently and reliably.